Car giant Honda UK is on the hunt for a social media agency to help open up customer conversations and move away from its corporate online presence.

Honda is seeking a digital and creative social media agency that can work alongside the in-house team to create a ‘fun and energetic’ online presence.

Tara Berry, social media and PR comms executive at Honda UK, said: ‘I want the chosen agency to work with me to revamp and refresh our social media strategy and platforms.

‘The agency must be able to think creatively and be able to create one-to-one relationships with our customers through social media.

‘I want us to engage with our customers with the personality that stems from our advertising – the personality that makes Honda a fun, energetic and creative brand, not a corporate one.’

Berry admitted that the brand had a ‘very corporate’ feel online and that Honda’s new social strategy should help people ‘want to talk to us and engage with us – not just be spoken to’.

The chosen agency will work with Berry and others in the core business areas of customer services, marketing, PR, sales and aftersales to implement the new digital strategy and develop creative online campaigns. The agency will not be needed for social media monitoring or buying.

Honda is aiming for the agency to be in place by June. All interested parties should send in creds stating why they would like to work for Honda and what their vision is for the company’s online presence.

The brief will only be sent to shortlisted agencies with two to five of those being invited to pitch.

Berry said she hoped to have the agency in place ahead of events and launches planned for later in the year, as Honda looks to begin its European fightback after suffering production and supply problems following last year’s Japanese tsunami and floods in Thailand.

The problems led to Honda's total worldwide production falling from 3.6 million cars to 2.9 million and sales from 3.55 million to 3 million between 2010 and 2011.